The Shy Nurse's Rebel Doc

by Alison Roberts

  But life could change in a heartbeat, that was for sure.

  And, sometimes, the change was a good one.

  Better than anything you might have dreamed of, in fact...

  * * *

  The cabin they were offered was luxurious. Crew T-shirts and track pants had been provided as well, so that they could get out of their oil-streaked, filthy overalls. It was only when Sam was turning to head for the bathroom that Blake noticed the rip in her protective clothing.

  ‘You’re not hurt, are you?’ It was weird the way his stomach knotted so hard at the thought.

  ‘I don’t think so. Only a scratch, if I am. It’s nothing.’ Sam’s expression was bleak as she looked over her shoulder. ‘Do you think Harriet’s going to be okay?’

  ‘I think infection’s the biggest danger now. Let’s hope that doesn’t happen.’

  ‘Will she get normal function back again?’

  Blake couldn’t help his frown. ‘It’s a nasty injury. That leg is never going to be the same.’

  ‘She’ll hate that so much. She loves being on the team so much and every spare minute gets spent outside. It’s all the things that she and Pete have in common—surfing, running, the rescue work.’

  ‘Do you think the relationship will survive?’

  ‘I hope so. Harry’s got more than enough to deal with already. If you really love someone, going through something like this can make the relationship stronger. What...?’ Sam was staring at him. ‘Don’t you think so?’

  ‘I can’t help wondering why he didn’t come to the hospital with her.’

  ‘He’s not a medic. I think things like that freak him out. And there wasn’t enough room in the chopper. Harry asked for me.’

  ‘He didn’t jump in his car to follow us, though, did he?’

  ‘No.’ Sam was pulling her arms from her overalls. The T-shirt she was wearing underneath rode up and Blake could see the graze on her skin under where the rip had been.

  ‘Let me check that.’

  ‘I’m fine.’

  But Blake was already beside her, gently examining the area.

  ‘See? It’s just a scratch.’

  ‘It could have been worse.’ Blake kept his hand resting on her skin. ‘And if it had been, there’s no way on earth anyone would have kept me from going to the hospital with you.’

  Did she understand what he was trying to tell her?

  That he loved her?

  The way she reached up to touch his face made it seem like she did understand. And the way she kissed him started to make it seem like she felt exactly the same way.

  Until there was a knock at the door and Sam jumped back as though she had been caught doing something unacceptable. Unprofessional, in any case. She disappeared into the bathroom as people started coming into the cabin with trays of food and drink. She was still combing out her hair by the time Blake had taken his turn to shower and change into clean clothes.

  ‘I can’t believe this,’ she said. ‘It’s the second time today I’ve been offered a feast. Oh...’ Her eyes widened. ‘I’ve only just realised that we completely forgot about all those things you bought in the cafeteria and it was such a special thing that you did. What a waste.’

  ‘I doubt it was wasted. The nurses would have found it and you know what it’s like when there’s free food on offer around that place. Besides...’ Blake took a step closer to Sam ‘...even if they didn’t find it, it would have been worth it.’

  ‘Why?’ This time, it was Sam who stepped closer.

  ‘Because I think you understand why I did it. It said something I couldn’t find the words to say.’

  Those eyes... The bluest eyes he’d ever seen and right now they were bottomless and he was falling...

  ‘That I need to take care of you,’ he added softly. ‘To feed you and protect you if, for some reason, it’s hard for you to do it for yourself. Because...’ He was close enough to touch her now. To pull her into his arms. ‘Because you mean so much to me, Sam. I... I love you...’

  Those eyes were shining with unshed tears now. ‘I love you too, Blake. And I certainly wouldn’t be able to find the words to tell you how much.’

  He rested his forehead against hers. ‘What are we going to do?’

  ‘You mean because neither of us does relationships?’

  ‘Exactly.’

  ‘But we didn’t choose to make this a relationship. Does that make a difference?’

  ‘I don’t know. Maybe.’ Blake tightened his hold on Sam. ‘Why don’t you do relationships?’

  ‘I’ve tried. They just don’t work so I kind of gave up.’

  ‘Because it’s been enough having to protect your parents? That it wouldn’t have left enough room for you if you’d had someone else to protect as well?’

  ‘Is that why you don’t do them?’

  ‘It’s more the idea of having someone else dependent on me, I think. Especially children. If something happens, there’s no choice but to sacrifice your life for them. Like my mother did for me.’

  ‘I’ll bet she didn’t see it as a sacrifice. She loves you.’

  Blake nodded slowly. ‘I know. And now I’m beginning to understand how you could choose to have a bond like that. How it can make even the things that seemed more important than anything else kind of...well, almost irrelevant.’

  ‘We could always go back to what we were doing,’ Sam said softly.

  ‘You mean the one-offs until one of us decides that we’ve had enough? The secret that nobody else knows anything about?’

  ‘Mmm.’

  ‘I don’t want it to be a secret any more. I want everyone to know what you mean to me.’ Making it public was suddenly important. Because it would make it feel more real? ‘I want my mother to get to know you. She’s going to love you.’

  Sam was grinning. ‘My mother’s going to be terrified of you. But she’ll learn to love you. So will Dad.’

  ‘And I could never have enough,’ Blake added. He knew it was true. He didn’t want to be without Sam for the rest of his life. For even a day if he could help it.

  Sam’s smile had faded completely. She had never looked more serious. ‘I couldn’t either.’

  ‘So...’ Blake straightened so that he could see her face properly. ‘Maybe we should just bite the bullet and get it over with.’

  ‘Get what over with?’

  He could feel one side of his mouth curling upwards. ‘The wedding.’

  Sam gasped. ‘You’ve got to be kidding me. That could possibly go down in history as the least romantic proposal ever.’

  Blake slid his hands down Sam’s arms to take hold of her hands. He held her gaze as he took a very deep, slow breath.

  ‘I love you,’ he said, then. ‘More than I ever thought it was possible to love anyone. I thought that sharing my life with someone would somehow stop me being the person I need to be and take away my freedom but...’ He caught another breath. ‘You are my freedom. You said that you felt like you were the person you’re meant to be today and that’s exactly how I feel when I’m with you. I can’t be that person unless you’re in my life and I’m asking you to promise me that you’ll be there for ever. Will you marry me, Sam?’

  Her lips were trembling and those unshed tears that had gathered earlier were now rolling down her face.

  ‘That’s it... You’ve found the words I couldn’t find. It wasn’t just that I was doing exciting, scary stuff today that made me feel like that. It was because I was with you. I’ve felt like that around you ever since...well, maybe ever since you glared at me for dropping that bedpan even though I didn’t know it then.’ Her words were tumbling out through a misty smile. ‘I don’t care if it means I can’t be on the team. I’d rather be with you. I can’t not be with you.’

  ‘So...is that a “yes”?’

&
nbsp; Sam blinked. ‘Didn’t I say that already?’

  ‘No.’ Blake smiled back at her. ‘But I think that’s what you meant.’

  ‘Oh...it was. Is... Yes, I’ll marry you, Blake. I can’t think of anything I’d rather do.’

  Blake could. Their wedding was too far in the future to think about right now. Not when there was something he’d much rather be doing. Judging by the look in Sam’s eyes, she wouldn’t be averse to celebrating this engagement in a very personal way. Her next words confirmed that impression.

  ‘Is there a lock on that door?’ she whispered.

  ‘I do believe there is.’

  ‘We wouldn’t want to get caught, would we...doing something that team members aren’t supposed to be doing?’

  ‘We’re off duty,’ Blake said firmly. ‘And I think it’s time some of those rules got relaxed a bit, anyway.’

  He stepped towards the door and turned the key in the lock.

  It didn’t feel as if he was keeping something out, however.

  It felt like he was letting something in.

  A whole new future—for both of them.

  It took only another stride to get close enough to Sam to sweep her off her feet and into his arms as he turned towards that deliciously big bed. And now it felt as if he was carrying Sam into that future with him.

  And nothing could have felt more right.

  * * * * *

  Look out for the next story in the Bondi Bay Heroes quartet

  Finding His Wife, Finding a Son

  by Marion Lennox

  Available now!

  And there are two more fabulous stories to come!

  Healed by Her Army Doc

  by Meredith Webber

  Rescued by Her Mr. Right

  by Alison Roberts

  Available September 2018!

  Keep reading for an excerpt from Finding His Wife, Finding a Son by Marion Lennox.

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  Finding His Wife, Finding a Son

  by Marion Lennox

  CHAPTER ONE

  ‘I COULD USE an emergency.’

  Dr Luc Braxton perched himself on the end of Harriet’s bed and snagged a chocolate from her stash. He was bored. Harriet was also bored but with more reason. She’d smashed her leg during an abseiling training exercise some weeks back. The break was horrific, there’d been complication after complication and she was struggling to regain any strength at all.

  ‘That’s not a kind thing to say to me,’ she retorted, but she managed a smile. Yeah, she was bored, but Luc took boredom to a whole new level.

  Luc and Harriet were both members of Australia’s crack Specialist Disaster Response team. They were based at Bondi Bayside Hospital, and while not wishing disaster to fall on the community at large, Luc was edgy when it didn’t.

  Disaster response was what Luc lived for. Harriet’s accident, with its possible long-term consequences, had left him gutted, but even the damage to his friend hadn’t taken the edge off his addiction to adrenaline.

  ‘Was the conference boring then?’ Harriet asked, trying to sound sympathetic.

  ‘Who could be bored in New York? And, no, the emergency medicine component was great. I learned a lot. But I did spend most of my time on my butt, listening, and twenty-four hours sitting on the plane either way. And then to get home and find the team doing another disaster drill off in the Blue Mountains without me...’

  ‘Which is why you’d better hope there’s no emergency,’ Harriet told him, but there was sympathy in her voice. Harriet was a specialist intensive care nurse. Luc was an emergency medicine physician. Neither was good at doing nothing. ‘The team can be recalled fast but it’ll take an extra couple of hours to bring them back to base,’ she said. ‘And you know they need to do it. Our last was the disaster when I was hurt, and they’ve been trying to get back there ever since. They return tomorrow. Let’s hold emergencies until then.’

  ‘So you’re not bored?’

  ‘Of course I am.’ Harriet glowered and winced as she tried to move her leg. ‘Give it a break, Luc. I’m likely to be bored for a very long time. At least you can do something about it.’

  She eyed Luc with speculation. ‘Hey, maybe it’s about time you thought about your love life. Word is that cute little nurse you’ve been dating threw you over before you left. Seems you stood her up for one date too many.’

  ‘Gotta love the hospital grapevine,’ Luc said equitably. ‘It knows my love life better than I do.’

  ‘You give it fodder. How many’s that this year? Three? Isn’t it time you thought about settling? Babies and a mortgage and washing the car on Sundays? Not interested?’

  ‘Not in a million years.’

  ‘Word is you were married.’

  ‘Yeah.’ He pushed himself off the bed and headed for the door. Personal discussions weren’t something he did. ‘Eight years ago. I’m not going back there in a hurry.’

  ‘So why the serial dating?’ Bored and interested, Harriet wasn’t letting him off the hook. ‘What are you looking for, Luc? Someone cute, smart, sexy, willing to have nine out of ten dates cancelled because of crises, happy for her guy to dangle from a rope mid-air while the rest of the world thinks he’ll break his neck...’

  ‘Harry...’

  ‘Hey, I know, it’s none of my business.’ She was starting to enjoy herself. ‘But you need to quit it with working your way through the hospital staff—it’s getting messy. How about you join a proper dating site? I’ll help you fill in your profile. What do we have? Six foot two, tall, dark, ripped and just a touch mysterious—or at least he likes crime novels. Yeah, I’ve seen you reading them between jobs. Super fit. Pulls a great wage. You might need to buy yourself life insurance to cover security issues but, wow, Luc, wait and see how many hits you get. You’ll make some girl a wonderful husband.’

  ‘I have no intention of being a husband, wonderful or otherwise.’

  ‘But you’ve already been one,’ Harriet said thoughtfully. ‘Want to tell Aunty Harry what happened? Where is she now?’

  ‘And I have no intention of telling you about my marriage, even if you are bored,’ Luc retorted through gritted teeth. ‘It’s past history. I have no idea where she is now. I’m heading down to Emergency to see if I can find someone to treat.’

  ‘The nurses are saying there’s nothing doing in Emergency. There doesn’t seem to be anything interesting happening in this whole hospital. Like your love life.’

  ‘You want to talk about yours? How are you and Pete?’

 
She winced again. ‘Yeah, okay, stalemate. But seriously, Luc... My offer of planting you in the middle of a dating site still stands. It might even be exciting.’

  ‘I have enough excitement in my life,’ he said, and gave her a hug, snagged another chocolate from her oversupply and left.

  Harriet was left staring thoughtfully after him.

  ‘You know,’ she said, to no one in particular, ‘I’m pretty sure you don’t. I’m pretty sure there’s not enough excitement in the universe to keep Luc Braxton happy. And I’d love to know what happened, and where that wife of yours is now.’

  * * *

  Dr Beth Carmichael was so tired all she wanted to do was sleep. Today had been once crisis after another. She was finally free to head home, but heading home with a toddler and a briefcase of medico-legal letters didn’t promise the sleep she craved.

  There’d even been a drama when she’d gone to pick Toby up from childcare.

  ‘Beth, would you mind looking at Felix Runnard? He’s been listless all day and now he’s developed a fever. His mum’s not due to pick him up until eight tonight and her boss gives her a hard time if she has to leave early. We’ve popped him into isolation but...what do you think? Should we ring his mum?’ Margie Lane, the childcare supervisor, was a sensible woman who didn’t fuss but she’d sounded worried.

  So Beth had put aside her longing for home and sat down with the little boy on her lap.

  A slight fever? The staff had taken his temp an hour ago but now he was burning. He was also arching his head and crying when she touched his neck.

  Fever. Sore neck. No sign of a virus. Alarm bells had rung.

  ‘Check his tummy for me,’ she’d told Margie as she cradled him, and Margie had lifted his singlet and removed his nappy.

  The beginnings of a rash.

  Meningitis?

  The childcare centre was in the shopping plaza, as was the clinic Beth worked from. She sent someone to the clinic for antibiotics and injected a first dose straight away. She could hope her tentative diagnosis was wrong, but she couldn’t wait for confirmation. If she was right, immediate antibiotics could make all the difference.